Save
by LSpade
Summary: Slight AU. Season 10. Clark is battling the darkness of fear and self-doubt and it's up to his special someone to help ease the burden.


**This is slightly AU, one of my favorites! Enjoy.**

**DISCLAIMER: Smallville will never be mine, so this is how I make myself feel better: by creating my own Cloisy goodness.**

The worn, wooden stairs creaked under the pressure of the weight ascending them, leading up to the loft of the Kent barn. Upon reaching the last step, the sight of Clark Kent – wearing a gray t-shirt and faded jeans – staring out of the huge window into the dark night caused her to involuntarily roll her eyes.

"Seriously, Clark," she spoke out, pulling him from his reverie. "I thought your brooding days were long gone."

"How could they be if I still have things to brood about, Lois?" he retorted, stuffing his hands in his pockets and turning to look at her.

She ruffled at his jibe and took a few steps toward him. "That'd better not been referring to me. I'm the one who makes you smile, Smallville, not brood."

"And who told you that lie?" he asked.

She made a face at him and decided to change the subject. "What the hell are you doing here on a Saturday night?" Albeit, she did it in Lois Lane fashion.

Clark sighed and leaned against the window. "I don't know, Lois. Testing out the decaying wood of the hay loft, examining the fields of corn, watching the stars…"

Lois stared at him for a moment. "You really need to get out more often."

"Too bad everyone's too busy to rescue me from the peace and quiet of the farm," he shot back sarcastically.

"And what am I?"

"The pain in my ass disturbing my peace."

She looked taken aback for a split second before her face split into a huge grin. "You're learning, Smallville." She moved over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Although, you may wanna watch how much attitude you use on me."

"Why? Think I'm gonna actually outdo you in the rude factor?" He slipped one arm around her waist.

"Please!" she scoffed. "No one can top me and if you try, I'll take you down."

He smiled slightly. "So, what are you doing here storming the fields of Smallville? I thought you were supposed to meet Chloe after work."

"I came to save my Smallville. You sounded upset on the phone. I wanted to make sure you were alright," she said, sweeping some of his hair off his forehead.

He leaned down and rested his against her forehead, their noses brushing. "I'm fine."

"You know you can't lie to me, Clark," she mumbled.

He smiled at that and closed his eyes. "Just a stressful week of patrolling. Nothing I can't handle," he replied, wrapping her completely in his arms and pulling her up snugly against him.

"Wanna talk about it?" she asked softly, brushing her lips against his. Her arms tightened around his neck.

He shook his head, pulling away slightly to look at her. "No, I'm okay, really. Besides, isn't Chloe expecting you soon? She's been harassing me about stealing you away from the rest of the world. She'll kill me if you don't show. Chloe may be little, but she is still your cousin. She can be evil if she wants to be."

Lois chuckled. "More evil than me? Impossible."

"Don't underestimate her," he smiled.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Cuz will be alright if I wanna stay with you," she said.

"Honey, go and have fun. I'm supposed to be on patrol anyway, so I won't be around all night. I can't keep you locked up on the Farm and I'm surprised you'd even consider it."

"You better believe it." She smirked and kissed him. "Okay, I'll go. I think we're going to some karaoke bar. Maybe we'll drink, sing, and pick up some guys. See you later." Lois tried to make a break for the stairs before Clark could call her out on her comment, but he was quicker than she expected, spinning her back into his embrace and sandwiching her between the wall of the loft and his hard body.

"You are one hell of a comedian," he growled, staring down at her.

"What do you mean?" she asked innocently, her hands resting on his chest.

"Don't act cute."

"I don't have to act cute. I _am_ cute," she smirked.

"Everything's a joke to you, isn't it?" he asked, dipping his head to nuzzle his nose against the soft skin of her neck.

"What's life without a little laughs?" she breathed and closed her eyes as he kissed along her jaw.

"Hmm…Are you wearing different perfume?" he muttered, his lips sliding down her neck. He pushed her hair back and inhaled deeply into the groove between her neck and shoulder.

Lois bit her lip at the sensations stirring within her lower abdomen. The fingers of her left hand threaded through his hair as her right hand grazed along the back of his shoulders. "Y-yeah…it's this, umm…" Her train of thought skidded along the tracks as Clark's tongue slipped out to mark her neck. "It's…Lavender Vanilla something…Ollie bought it for Chloe and she wanted me to try it."

"Mmm," he mumbled into her neck, his hands sliding along the curves of her body. "I like it, but you're Wild Cherry suits you better. You're not really vanilla material."

"I could be," she protested. "I know you like your vanilla…"

"I love my Wild Cherry," he responded quickly. He bit down gently on her skin, then licked the spot to soothe the pain. He kissed the forming purplish bruise and smiled into her neck.

Having had enough of his teasing, Lois pulled roughly on his hair to wrench his head back. She crashed her lips against his and slid one leg around his to pull him into her. She moaned as her tongue met his in a passionate dance. Clark's hands gripped her waist as he continued the assault on her mouth. The heat was building between them, but before either could extract a single piece of clothing, a loud _thunk_ was heard from the stairs.

The couple pulled away from each other and directed their hazy gazes toward the petite blonde glaring at them from the other end of the loft with a large book at her feet. "Not sorry to interrupt your little tryst here, but we've got plans, Cuz. I know you two can get lost in each other, but I didn't think I had to resort to dropping anvils rather than the proverbial cough."

Lois chuckled. She knew Chloe wasn't really mad; maybe annoyed that the make out session was cutting into their Chlo/Lo time, but she wasn't upset. Lois sighed and pulled her limbs from her boyfriend and straightened her clothes out. "Okay, I'm coming. Just give me a minute."

Chloe reluctantly left the barn to wait for her cousin by the car. She knew that if she left the couple, it would take a crowbar to pry them apart. Sometimes it was cute to see Lois and Clark so entwined with each other, happy – given their rough pasts, but other than Clark zooming off to fulfill his Blur duties and Lois diving into her work, it was difficult to find time with one or the other. For this, Chloe was excited about Lois being free for a couple hours on the town and she did not want her to skip out last minute.

"I better go before she drags me out kicking and screaming," Lois joked, trailing her fingers along his jaw.

"Why are you so reluctant to leave? You never pass up an opportunity to get out of Smallville. And it's Chloe."

"I just…Smallville isn't as boring as I once thought," she replied.

"The town or the man?" he teased and fiddled with the hem of her shirt.

"The town, of course," she chuckled. "And I want to be convinced you are fine before I leave."

"Lois, I'm one hundred percent okay," Clark said a bit exasperatedly.

"That's why you're eyes tell me you're dealing with something that's stressing you out; and why you're not telling me about it when we promised to be honest with each other. And also, why you're holding me like you're afraid I might disappear."

Clark lessened his hold on her and averted his eyes. She could always read him like a book. It's what made their connection that much stronger. "Is it wrong to want to hold my girlfriend like I love her? Because I do."

"I love you, too, honey," she smiled and swept a hand through his hair. "And if you don't want to talk, it's fine. I'll be just a phone call away, although I don't mind popping in a movie and waiting for you to finish your patrol-" She was cut off by the honking of a car horn from the driveway.

"I think Chloe would mind," Clark smiled slightly. "Go. Don't make me tell you again."

"Alright, Mr. Bossy Pants." Lois pushed him away playfully with a roll of her eyes. "But I don't enjoy you telling me what to do."

"That's not what you say in the bedroom," he mumbled, but loud enough for her to hear him.

She whipped around, slack-jawed, and punched him in the shoulder. "Smallville!"

"You better go, Lois," he smirked, leaning against the window.

She glared at him playfully before heading for the stairs. "See you later." She turned back to look at her and she swore she saw a glimmer of sadness in his eyes. She tried not to think too much of it as she went to meet Chloe.

(((o)))

The karaoke bar was pumping with loud music and badly singing drunken people. Lois and Chloe were parked at the bar, knocking back drinks and making fun of every person who got up to sing.

Lois downed the crantini she was drinking and nudged her cousin. "Our turn," she smiled. Chloe nodded and the two made their way up to the stage. "What song should we sing?"

Chloe looked over the song list. Her eyes lit up when she came across a song. "This one!" She eagerly pointed to the title and Lois looked over her shoulder. "Perfect! Damn, we should have had Smallville and Ollie here to hear us. They would love this number," Lois chuckled.

"Yeah," Chloe smiled. "Alright, let's do this, cuz!"

They grabbed mics and the music began. Chloe laughed as Lois started dancing.

"This is what a woman wants..." Lois smirked.

"_Any man of mine better be proud of me_

_Even when I'm ugly he still better love me_

_And I can be late for a date that's fine_

_But he better be on time_

_Any man of mine'll say it fits just right_

_When last year's dress is just a little too tight_

_And anything I do or say better be okay_

_When I have a bad hair day_

_And if I change my mind_

_A million times_

_I wanna hear him say_

_Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah I like it that way_"

Chloe joined her cousin and the two owned the stage, dancing against each other and gaining cheers and wolf whistles because of it.

"_Any man of mine better walk the line_

_Better show me a teasin' squeezin' pleasin' kinda time_

_I need a man who knows, how the story goes_

_He's gotta be a heartbeatin' fine treatin'_

_Breathtakin' earthquakin' kind_

_Any man of mine _"

Lois walked off the stage while singing and focused on a guy in the crowd.

"_Well any man of mine better disagree_

_When I say another woman's lookin' better than me_

_And when I cook him dinner and I burn it black_

_He better say, mmmm, I like it like that yeah_"

The guy blushed when Lois ran a finger down his chest and winked before walking back to the stage. The cousins continued dancing while attempting to sing through their laughter.

"_And if I changed my mind_

_A million times_

_I wanna hear him say_

_Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah I like it that way_

_Any man of mine better walk the line_

_Better show me a teasin' squeezin' pleasin' kinda time_

_I need a man who knows, how the story goes_

_He's gotta be a heartbeatin' fine treatin'_

_Breathtakin' earthquakin' kind_

_Any man of mine_"

Lois and Chloe were so absorbed in the music and enjoying their bonding time that they didn't notice the tall raven-haired man who walked into the bar. Lois was facing Chloe while singing, but turned back to the crowd and finally spotted him. She stumbled on a few words, wondering why her boyfriend suddenly appeared at the bar, when Chloe noticed what she was staring at. Clark's stance looked tense; his jaw was set, his shoulders were completely squared and his fists were balled by his sides. She could see from the stage that his eyes were sharp, but Lois could feel that there was something paining him. She looked at Chloe worriedly to which the blonde reciprocated. The song ended and they said quick thank you's before exiting the stage. Lois and Chloe walked briskly toward the kryptonian and pulled him into a secluded corner so they could speak quietly.

"Clark, what's wrong?" Lois asked, reaching up to smooth the tension on his face.

He grabbed her hand in a firm grip and pulled it away from his face as he inhaled sharply. "We need to go home. Now." His voice was strained and Lois began to worry even more.

"Why? What's going on?" she asked.

"Lois," he said through gritted teeth. He closed his eyes. "Please."

"O-okay. Okay, we'll go." She turned to Chloe. "Take the car back home. I'll talk to you later."

"Okay." Chloe nodded.

Another word couldn't be uttered before Clark was dragging Lois out of the bar. "Whoa whoa whoa. I don't know what's happening here, but you do not manhandle me like that, Smallville." Clark ignored her and proceeded to pull her into a dark alley. Once he was sure they were alone, he grabbed a firm hold on her and whisked her back to the farm. "Clark, seriously. You're freaking me out. What's going on?" Lois asked strongly once they appeared, pulling on his arm to get him to stop dodging her questions.

"I-I just needed you," he said, his face giving away the fear in his eyes.

"Why? Are you okay?" she asked.

"God, Lois! Can't I just want you here?" Clark asked in frustration.

"I offered to stay, but you told me to go. So don't act like I didn't want to be here for you. I tried to get you to open up to me, but you closed off," she started firmly, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Lois…"

"Smallville, I'm going to ask you one more time. Are you okay?" she asked, taking a step toward him.

Clark shook his head and pulled her against him, kissing her hard. Lois was surprised all of two seconds before complying, grabbing onto his massive biceps to keep her balance. When he pushed her into the kitchen counter, Lois broke away with a gasp. Clark dove into her neck, leaving open-mouthed kisses along her skin. Lois gripped his hair at the back of his head; her passion-addled brain refusing to acknowledge any coherent thought, but somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew there was something wrong with her boyfriend. She'd never seen him reach this level of brooding and to be hiding behind intimacy was also very unusual.

Clark gripped her hips and lifted her onto the counter, stepping between her opened legs, and claimed her lips once again. Lois almost lost her train of thought, but managed to push against his chest.

"Clark…" she mumbled as soon as her lips were free. "This isn't like you." She tried to sound calm and soothing, hoping not to upset him.

"Why are you acting like this? Is there a problem showing my woman how much I love her?" he asked, his tone coming off as a bit annoyed.

"Your 'woman'?" Lois arched an eyebrow in both amusement and incredulousness. "Since when do you refer to me as your 'woman'?"

"Why do you keep asking me questions? Don't you trust me?"

She shook her head, completely confused. "Smallville, who said anything about trust? But you won't answer any of my questions."

"Why are you asking so many?"

"Asking questions is in my blood," she fired back.

Clark shook his head. "You know what? I don't need this. I thought you would be the one to help me. Apparently I was wrong."

"Help you with what?" Lois asked, exasperated. She jumped off the counter and moved toward him. "Smallville, you won't tell me what's bothering you, so how can I help you?"

"I just want hold you. To kiss you. To know someone needs me. That's all I want," he said. He tried to sound calm, but she could hear the broken child in his voice.

"Clark," she said softly, reaching up to cup his face in her hands. "I'll always want you. For always and forever. Nothing is going to change that. But more importantly, the world needs you. So many people count on you to keep them safe. You have no idea how important you are, how special."

"I just want you to want me," he said, pulling her into a tight embrace.

"I do," she smiled gently. She leaned up to kiss him tenderly. "Please, talk to me."

Clark sighed and his head dropped to her shoulder. She gently rubbed his back in a soothing manner. "There was a fire. Just outside of town and I got everyone out. I thought I did…but there was this man, stuck inside. I went back in and he was wearing black slacks and a white shirt. He was clutching his heart. He fell to the ground, the smoke finally taking him over. He reminded me so much of my dad. And I couldn't save him. I tried; really hard, I tried. His wife was screaming for him, and I couldn't bring him to her. I felt so helpless, and her screams echoed in my head until I found you. I just…I needed you to make me forget."

Lois's heart broke for him. She felt the trembles in his body and she clutched onto him. "Smallville, this is something you will never forget. But you have to remember that you saved everyone else. What's one life compared to all the others? It's never easy to lose a life, but death's a part of life. You did the best you could and that's all that matters. You just have to trust that everything happens for a reason. Moments like these are what gains experience. And no matter what, you will always be my hero."

He took in a deep, shaky breath before lifting his head to look her in the eye. His eyes glistened with unshed tears and Lois reached up to caress his cheek. He nodded gently and leaned into her touch. He leaned down to kiss her softly, slowly coaxing her to deepen the kiss. Her lips parted to make way for his tongue, which he used to slide over her teeth and swirl around her own tongue. Lois emitted soft moans in which encouraged Clark to explore her body as if it was the first time touching her. He lifted her up onto the counter again and this time, she didn't object.

"You always know how to make me feel better," he said huskily as she ridded him of his shirt.

"That's what I'm here for, Smallville," she grinned, breathless. She pulled him into her again, their noses bumping. "One save at a time."

He captured her lips in a passionate kiss. He pulled her legs up around his waist and pulled her off the counter. As he made his way over to the staircase, she nibbled on his bottom lip, tugging on it as she pulled away. He growled and held her tighter. "I love you."

"I love you, too," she whispered in his ear. Her arms tightened around his neck and she pulled herself closer.

Clark made his up the stairs and into their bedroom. It wasn't long until they were wrapped in the sheets, entwined with each other, and reaching those blissful levels of ecstasy. When they were spent and collapsed in a pile of limbs against the mattress, Lois lifted her head and propped her chin up on his chest.

She grinned at him warily. "I don't know how, but it gets better every time."

Clark laughed wholeheartedly, stroking her damp hair away from her face. "I love you." His eyes shined with the adoration he felt for her.

"I love you, too, Smallville." Her hands came up to slid through his hair, massaging his scalp. "And no matter what happens, I will always be here for you."

He knew it and he felt it. For long years to come, Lois Lane will always bring Clark Kent back from the depths of fear and doubt. That's what true love does.

**Ahh, super mushy and all. I don't know. This idea was just bouncing around in my head for a while and I just had to write it. Reviews are always welcome. Thanks!**


End file.
